Inside the Patriots: Lions game should answer some key questions

There are plenty of questions still surrounding the New England Patriots, and tonight's third preseason game is going to do a lot to answer many of them.

TIM WEISBERG

There are plenty of questions still surrounding the New England Patriots, and tonight's third preseason game is going to do a lot to answer many of them.

After all, the third exhibition is usually the one that "counts," in which a majority of the top guys on the depth chart get the chance to prove they're ready and some of the guys below them hope they've made enough impact to get another look.

"Part of it is evaluating players, trying to figure out who you want on your team and how your team is going to be composed. Part of it is getting players ready that you know are going to play for your team and getting them working together in groups," head coach Bill Belichick said. "It's a tough balancing act."

Although many pundits have already anointed them as the team to beat in the AFC — and with good reason — the Patriots may be solid but they're not yet solidified.

How will the Pats' offensive line, likely with rookie Nate Solder still starting at left tackle, look against the monstrous defensive line of the Lions? Or will Matt Light make the start? After finally returning to practice earlier this week, will Albert Haynesworth be in the lineup, and if he is, can he make an impact? And playing against a young, hungry Detroit team, can New England be as dominant as they've been in the first two preseason games, when they outscored opponents 78-26?

Even if Belichick decides to use this game more as a continued audition for the many bubble players on the roster and keeps his regulars sidelined, as he suggested he may do this week, these questions and others may begin to be answered. And even in the one-game-at-a-time mentality that pervades the Patriots, it's not just about the way the team looks heading into the season opener, but how it will look for the long haul.

"Detroit was 4-0 a few preseasons ago and ended up being 0-16," Patriots quarterback Tom Brady said this week. "I just read the Colts lost like eight straight preseason games and they seem to be a pretty good regular season, postseason team.

"However good it looks (in the preseason), it's not ever as good as it looks, and however bad it looks, it's never really as bad as it looks."

That being said, these Patriots have already shown the potential and the desire to run rampant over teams, possibly in a way similar to the record-setting 2007 season. The difference is, in the wake of "Spygate," Belichick and his team was playing that year with a collective chip on their shoulder. If they dominate in the regular season like they have in the postseason, it won't be for revenge or for respect or any of those other reasons. Instead, they'll do it simply because they can. It's how they're built, at least on paper.

Even as roster decisions have to be made and questions about Haynesworth have to be fended off, Belichick appears comfortable enough with the individual pieces of his team that he's beginning to foster chemistry over competition for spots. On Wednesday night, he decided to give his team a break and screened the Oscar-winning film "The Fighter," complete with popcorn, candy and an appearance from the real "Fighter" himself, Micky Ward. Other guests at practice this week included Boston College hockey coach Jerry York and rocker and close Belichick pal Jon Bon Jovi.

A reporter asked Belichick on Thursday if he ever felt as if he were livin' on a prayer, referencing the classic Bon Jovi tune.

"Sometimes," he replied.

But really, when you're the Patriots, prayers are not part of the equation. Instead it's preparation and talent meeting opportunity. When you're the Patriots and you have that, well, as JBJ sang, you're halfway there.

Tim Weisberg covers the Patriots for The Standard-Times. Contact him at timweisberg@hotmail.com.